Tribal officials challenged the Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to grant permits for Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners’ $3.8 billion pipeline that is meant to carry oil from North Dakota to IL. The Native American tribe argued that the location of the pipeline would be a violation of their federal laws, along with the fact that it would jeopardize the water supply for the tribe. Its path through IL cuts across much of west-central IL.
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U.S. District Judge James Boasberg denied the request of the Standing Rock Sioux for a temporary injunction against the four-state pipeline that would transport Bakken Shale oil to IL.
The government says it now is reconsidering its decision on the pipeline and wants input from the tribe.
“This case has highlighted the need for a serious discussion on whether there should be nationwide reform with respect to considering tribes’ views on these types of infrastructure projects”, the joint statement said.
Earthjustice attorney Jan Hasselman, who is representing the tribe, said the litigation will continue until the two sides reach an agreement on where or whether construction can move forward.
A statement on the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s Facebook account reads, “This federal statement is a game changer for the Tribe and we are acting immediately on our legal options, including filing an appeal and a temporary injunction to force DAPL to stop construction”. “I think you go back to the drawing board and you figure out the next step for the Standing Rock people”, Frank said.
ClearView Energy Partners analysts noted that if the Army Corps reviews the Lake Oahe easement quickly, Dakota Access could start service just a few months later than its target date of January 2017.
The judge, in a 58-page ruling, said the tribe had “not demonstrated that an injunction is warranted here”.
The Dakota Access Pipeline plans to transport crude oil 1,170 miles from North Dakota to Patoka, Illinois.
“There’s never been a coming together of tribes like this, ” according to Judith LeBlanc, a member of the Caddo Nation in Oklahoma and director of the New York-based Native Organizers Alliance.
Opposition to the pipeline has drawn support from 200 Native American tribes, as well as from activists and celebrities. The government’s action reflected the success of growing protests over the planned pipeline that have drawn worldwide support and sparked a renewal of Native American activism. The pipeline company, Dakota Access LLC, also was asked to halt construction in other areas adjacent to federal land. Several hundred people gathered on the lawn, braving a torrential downpour to sing, play drums and burn sage grass.
“It was a peaceful rally, it wasn’t a protest, it was a peaceful rally to raise awareness to the surrounding communities. yes and on the video, well I was there, and I made that clear, that we’re not here to scare anybody, we’re not here to harm and were not protestors, we are protectors of the water, that’s essentially what we are doing”, says Jasmine Harden & Jessica LaTray, Rally Organizers. The National Guard was activated in North Dakota.
Congratulations to the Standing Rock Sioux for standing strong against oil and for inspiring a global movement against fossil fuels. Klyde Warren, at the time of the purchase, was 9 years old.
Archambault was scheduled to speak later Friday.
North Dakota authorities announced a mobilization of law enforcement at the protest site and National Guard members were dispatched to work security at traffic checkpoints.
“This is a historic, unprecedented, and overdue move by the Administration that is reflective of the courageous and principled stand by the Standing Rock Sioux”, Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club, said in a statement on the Obama administration blocking the project.
But moments after the ruling, the USA government urged construction to stop temporarily at one particular site. Over Labor Day weekend, violence flared between private security and protesters when a few protesters were bitten by dogs, and even more were pepper sprayed.
“It is also concerning that the federal government would threaten the livelihoods of thousands of workers who rely on good governance to support a stable workplace”, he said in a statement. But the federal government quickly stepped in Friday by stopping work on one section and asking the pipeline company to do the same on a larger 40-mile swath.
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“Had the decision been different, it most certainly would have had a chilling effect on domestic infrastructure development and the US economy as no sane American company would dare invest the time and resources necessary for proper consultations and approvals only to have its project shuttered halfway through”, Stevens wrote. “Construction of the entire project would cease and the project itself would be jeopardized”.
